Since the nationwide lockdown, people have been directed to “stay home” to prevent the virus spread. Consequently, cases of Domestic Violence have increased manifold. For countless women living 24x7 with their abusers, the lockdown has hugely exacerbated the violence they face, and the National Commission for Women has reported a twofold increase in Domestic Violence since the lockdown. This situation is now recognized as a ‘Shadow Pandemic’ by UN Women and countries across the world are seeing a surge in domestic violence.
Akshara Centre along with Special Cell for Women and Children (TISS) with support from Government of Maharashtra, the Police and many eminent personalities from the sports and entertainment industry, came together to produce a powerful video #
Akshara Centre is thrilled to announce the launch of the Bengali version of the video #LockdownOnDomesticViolence, in collaboration with Swayam and David & Goliath films, supported by Aparna Sen, Usha Uthup, Parambrata Chatterjee, Bickram Gosh, Konkona Sen Sharma, Richa Sharma, Adil Hussain and Jaya Sil. They urge people to not be bystanders but to report and help women seek help on West Bengal women’s commission helpline number.
“This increase in domestic violence during the lockdown is not just an Indian phenomenon; it is being reported all over the world. We know that containment measures and quarantine are essential to overcome COVID-19 but we cannot have women entrapped in violent homes where even making a phone call is difficult," tells Nandita Shah, co-director Akshara Centre.
“In these troubled times, this video is a welcome and much-needed step in giving women the voice to stand up against the abusers and fight back against domestic violence. The West Bengal Commission for Women is extremely happy to provide support to women through this initiative,” says Leena Ganguly, chairperson of West Bengal Commission for Women.
The celebrities who supported our English, Hindi and Marathi videos included Ajinkya Rahane, Anushka Sharma, Dia Mirza, Farhan Akhtar, Karan Johar, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Mithali Raj, Nandita Das, Rahul Bose, Rohit Sharma, Sachin Tendulkar, Sakshi Tanwar, Shabana Azmi, Shreyas Talpade, Sonali Kulkarni, Sunil Shetty, Vidya Balan and Virat Kohli.
“Over a third of women in India are subjected to Domestic Violence, which results in over 10,000 women being killed or driven to commit suicide by their family members every year. The lockdown has made the home even more unsafe for women who are now unable to access any support due to lack of mobility, lack of access to phones, transport and support services," says Anuradha Kapoor, director of Swayam.